Characteristics of Light
Light is the raw material we work with.
Light to photographers is like clay to a potter or words to a writer.
A writer uses a pen to write words to communicate what they see, think, or feel.
A photographer uses a camera to record light to photograph what they see, think, or feel.
Light has characteristics that we can describe. We can see and think of these light sources on a base level in two ways. The first is transmitting or illuminating, and the second is reflective.
We see reflective light sources only because an
illuminating/transmitting light affects it. Think of the sun lighting our part of the planet and illuminating, or making visible, all the reflective light sources we get to see and photograph.
And learning to describe the characteristics of the light we're seeing is good practice.
This is important because when we understand the light we're seeing, we'll know what to do with camera
operation to get the best picture possible to communicate what we'd like to express intentionally.
Characteristics of Light: Duration
Hello ,
The last characteristic of light I'll talk about is duration.
Duration is the amount of time light sources are visible.
We could think about duration in terms of transmitting light and reflected light.
Duration of Light: Reflective Light Sources
Imagine we're photographing a busy street.
We see people walking, cars driving by, bicyclists, etc.
We've framed the scene in our viewfinders.
When we observe things coming into and out of the frame, we can think of those objects as having a duration of time of being seen in our frame before not being seen in
it.
Duration of Light: Transmitting Light Sources
In our natural world, our primary transmitting light source is the sun, and the duration of the light provided by the sun is from approximately dusk to dawn.
We could also think of duration in terms of the time a light source stays on.
Think of things like the lightbulbs in our homes, blinking traffic signs, studio strobes, and the flashes of our cameras.
When it comes to flash, we can control the intensity of the output of it.
And when controlling the intensity of the flash, we increase or decrease
the duration of it.
In other words, it ain't about how bright the flash is. It's about the amount of time the flash stays on.
When it comes to
camera operation, we can think of shutter speed as duration.
Studying and Practicing With Duration
We can practice seeing duration by observing transmitting and reflecting light sources.
For guidance, refer to the above transmitting and reflective light source headings.
When it comes to camera operation, study and practice with
shutter speed.
And in terms of viewing photographs, if we see any blurring due to movement, it has everything to do with duration.
Spend as
much time (get it? ) as you need and have fun.
And remember, we learn and improve by doing, so practice making at least one picture
today.
That's all for now; thanks for reading!
Sam
I'll help you be a better photographer—study and practice photography with me.
And what if the timing doesn't work for you in any of my scheduled group classes? If that's the case, let's schedule a one-time lesson or
a series of in-person or online private instruction that covers the same things as my group classes.
Ways to work with me are listed below.
